Corner Gas

Director:  Brent Butt
Length:  30 min.

Stand-up comedians seem to enjoy turning their one-liners into thirty-minute episodes of laughs.   Brent Butt penned a sitcom based in his home province of Saskatchewan, where he imagined he would still be pumping gas if he hadn't become a successful stand-up comedian.  The show features a cast of eight, centered around a gas station and a cafe. Without all the usual drama of most shows, Corner Gas focuses all its efforts on snappy one-liners, idiomatic expressions both in and out of context, and quick repartee between its characters.  It's like doing a comedy routine with a whole cast of sidekicks, straight men and dummies.  Every character is both well-rounded and exaggerated. Famous Canadians make cameo appearances in many episodes.

Corner Gas was an amazing success in Canada (where a show rarely lasts more than 100 episodes), survived for five seasons, and was exported beyond Canada. Some of the actors were well-known before the show, but for most Corner Gas was their biggest gig. The show was so successful that they made a feature-length film in 2014, though it was not as big a hit as expected.  

The gas station and diner set so popular as a photo-op for people driving through Saskatchewan that the fake buildings remained up long after originally anticipated. The set (in Rouleau, Saskatchewan) was finally destroyed in 2016, because it was no longer safe for the public to be near.


   

Wilby Wonderful

Director:  Daniel MacIvor
Length: 99 min.
Released: 2004

  

Quirky towns always make popular settings for films.  Wilby Wonderful follows a group of characters and interwoven characters through a single somewhat ordinary day.  Wilby is a small town, on a little island where residents view anyone not born and raised on the island as a foreigner.  The story is set in Canada, but the conflicts within the film are so universal that it could take place anywhere.  Canadian actors populate the film, and a few who have become very famous in the US (Sandra Oh and Ellen Page).  As in many stories, each character evolves over the day and becomes a better and more whole member of the community.  The well-written screenplay brings Wilby to life, and even though the entire film takes place in only one day, we have lived something with the characters.  Wilby Wonderful challenges its characters to move beyond themselves in order find their place and purpose within the community.  The fact that the title sounds like "we'll be wonderful" is another fringe benefit of an already good title, presented in the film as a banner for an upcoming town festival which was printed backwards.  Quirky music fills the soundtrack.  Wilby Wonderful is a gem.  

Little Miss Sunshine

Director: Jonathan Dayton
Length:
Released: 2006

When first introduced, the mix of characters in Little Miss Sunshine barely function as a family.  A surprise win in a beauty contest throws everyone off guard, suddenly requiring them to drop everything, cancel all plans, and transport their little girl to the pageant (the source of the film's title).  Everyone has an opinion on her participation, but despite contrasting philosophies, ideals and morals, the family develops a crazed commitment to arrive in time for the pageant.

As in any good road trip, it's the adventures along the way that make the story worth telling.  Anyone with a VW bus knows its limitations, and the journey from New Mexico to southern California becomes an odyssey with its moments of comedy and tragedy.  The yellow bus almost seems to smile as it avenges the constant need for speed in the modern world, lamenting the bygone era of travel at a slower pace.

The rich selection of actors in atypical roles demonstrate additional dimensions of their abilities.  Young Paul Dano's reticent teenager, committed to a vow of silence, speaks only through words on his t-shirts and a notepad until halfway through the film, when he releases all his bottled-up emotions.  Abigail Breslin plays his sister, the young heroine determined to follow her dreams, unaware of how they may look to the rest of the world.  Toni Collette and  Greg Kinnear play their parents, trying to hold the family together, which includes Steve Carrell (proving he's more than a comedian) as an uncle recently released on parole, and Alan Arkin (who won an Oscar) as the grandfather, the most supportive of his granddaughter's interest in the pageant).  

The unanticipated road trip throws everyone's personalities, fears and quirks in a confined space.  The family learns to accept and appreciate what each person contributes, and ironically it is their most naïve member who proves wisest, pursuing her own path rather than be led by others (as they all initially assume).

Little Miss Sunshine makes you laugh, cheer, and even cry.  Even the most dysfunctional families have a bond, and this film lets its characters explore their differences before bringing them back together.
Their collective values are manifested in their little girl's dance at the beauty pageant.  The absurdity of their presence is overruled by pride for her individuality, and their shared adventures draw them together as a family once again.

The way this small film became a sensational hit is the type of Cinderella story that keeps indie filmmakers pursuing their dreams.  Little Miss Sunshine won hearts, awards, and success at the box office.  Michael Arndt won an Oscar for his original screenplay, initially written in three days.  Alan Arkin won an Oscar, and Abigail Breslin was nominated.

Official website

Elizabethtown

Director: Cameron Crowe

Length: 123 min.
Released: 2005

It doesn't get much better than Cameron Crowe.  With his latest creation, Elizabethtown, everything's there: comedy, drama, a road trip, family values and feuds, satire, and music.  Unfortunately, the box office didn't reflect this total package, but when has that ever happened to Crowe?  The public, it appears, has yet to appreciate his prowess.  His love of music means there's a perfect song for every moment of the film.  Luckily for us (few) fans, he decided to produce a truly memorable two volume soundtrack, despite the film's lackluster success.  Tom Petty has a prominent place, as he always does in Crowe films, as well as Crowe's wife, Nancy Wilson, who provides several of the themes.
  

 Soundtrack, Vol. 1 

Soundtrack, Vol. II                                                                     

Orlando Bloom does an excellent job with an American accent, and Kirsten Dunst is adorable in her role.  Both characters could be shallow, but Crowe gives them depth and lets the actors breathe life into them.  It's nice to dig beneath the surface and learn about these characters who would be lost on the outskirts in real life or in another movie.  Strong supporting actors inhabit Crowe's Elizabethtown (including Susan Sarandon),  and they each provide humor, drama and wit.  There's true character development; even the minor ones stay with you.  By the end, you've laughed, cried, and grown with everyone in the film.  You almost forget you're being told a story:  you're just part of the crowd, someone else at the party. 

Elizabethtown is another Cameron Crowe masterpiece that perfectly captures small-town America and the difficulties of family.  A must-see for anyone.